Canada’s economy stalled again in August, StatCan says

Posted October 30, 2026 8:47 am

1 min read

Statistics Canada says the economy stalled for a second month in a row in August amid weakness in the public sector and wholesale trade.

The agency says real gross domestic product was essentially unchanged in August despite a rebound in retail trade that more than offset a decline in July.

Manufacturing output has also grown in five of the last seven months, while a solid month on the railways drove gains in transportation and warehousing.

0:37 Canada loses 42,000 jobs in August as unemployment rate holds at 6.4%

Wholesale trade, meanwhile, fell 1.4 per cent in August as most subsectors contracted.

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Work to prepare the 2026 census was also winding down in the month, driving widespread contractions in public administration.

StatCan’s early estimates for September suggest real GDP declined 0.1 per cent amid losses in manufacturing and mining, quarrying and oil and gas extraction.

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